During his time in Emerson’s laboratory, Tom attended the first Gatlinburg Conference PI3K inhibitor in 1952, one

of the earliest photosynthesis conferences in USA with an international participation. (See Tom with Emerson in Fig. 2 [top and bottom], and with Rabinowitch in Fig. 3.) Fig. 2 Top (Left to right) Tom Punnett, Albert Frankel, Robert Emerson, David Goddard, and Robin Hill at a sunrise hike in the Smoky Mountains, outside Gatlinburg, 1952. Bottom At a picnic in Illinois: Robert Emerson is standing, wearing a tie, and peeling an egg; Hope and Tom Punnett are sitting. Photo taken by Robin Hill on the way to Gatlinburg, 1952 Fig. 3 Tom Punnett (second from left) and Eugene Rabinowitch (fourth from left) walking with two international scientists, Urbana IL, circa 1952–1953 Marcia Brody, who had later joined Emerson’s lab, recently told one of us (Govindjee): “When I came to Emerson’s lab, Tom was there. He was extremely kind, and could not have been kinder; he was very helpful to me; he was a thoughtful and Selleck PD0332991 a generous person, and had a good sense of humor. He was a very dedicated scientist.” Steve Brody, then a student of Rabinowitch, wrote, before he

died: I remember [Tom and Hope Punnett] from my days at the University of Illinois in the 1950s rather well. We all used to play bridge in their house, on hot summer days in Urbana. Tom was a most friendly, helpful co-worker in Emerson’s lab. Emerson thought very highly of him. Emerson had recommended that Tom do a post-doc in England with Robin Hill, and he did go to Cambridge for that. (See a Tribute to Steve Brody by Hirsch et al. 2010.) Academic and research life After receiving his Ph.D. (Punnett 1954), Tom began a post-doctoral fellowship in biochemistry at Cambridge University, England, CYTH4 where he worked with Robert (Robin) Hill on the influence of environmental conditions on photosynthesis. At this time no one knew about the two photosystems in plants (for Timeline of discoveries in photosynthesis, see Govindjee and Krogmann 2004). Hill (1937, 1939) had found that the oxygen evolving part of photosynthesis could be separated from the carbon dioxide fixation part by using an electron

acceptor such as ferricyanide. Tom combined this “Hill” reaction and his own experience with the single cell alga, Chlorella pyrenoidosa. Chlorella was the organism of choice as it was easy to grow and could be used directly in gas exchange measurements using Warburg manometers or oxygen electrodes. Derek Bendall, of the UK, wrote: Tom and Hope were very kind to us when we were on sabbatical in Philadelphia 1968–1969 with a young family. He always seemed to be brimming over with a youthful enthusiasm for science and for his experiments, despite suffering at least his fair share of difficulties and setbacks..What Tom had been doing for his Ph.D. with Emerson fitted very well with one of Robin Hill’s main research interests at the time-natural electron acceptors….